A taxi passenger with more than 19 kilograms of heroin was arrested in the northern province of Bac Giang on Saturday.

Nguyen Duy Bien, 28, was sitting on the front seat holding a bag with part of the heroin and the rest was found in another bag kept in the back seat of the taxi. The drug was hidden among noodle packs.

The taxi driver told police Bien had hired him in Hanoi for a trip to Lang Son Province on the China border.

Bien, identified as a member of a drug trafficking gang, said the heroin was bought from Son La Province and delivered to Hanoi.

The case is being investigated further.

Vietnam has some of the world's toughest drug laws. Those convicted of smuggling more than 600 grams of heroin or more than 2.5 kilograms of meth can be awarded the death penalty.